with the seed in it.

“The earth brought forth vegetation; plants yielding seed of every kind, and trees of every kind bearing fruit with the seed in it.” Genesis 1: 13

Why haven’t I every seen that before? Don’t just bear fruit, but bear fruit WITH THE SEED IN IT!

This week is the 2nd week of our Creation Series in worship at Epiphany Lutheran Church where I serve here in Denver. We will be celebrating the Land and the Soil, and all that comes from it. As I was pondering the creation story according to the first chapter of Genesis, I was struck by these words “bear fruit with the seed in it.” Now maybe that’s not very significant to you, but I realize in this text that it’s not enough to bear fruit, but that fruit must have seeds to produce more fruit.

Now I don’t know how many times I’ve gone to the store and when I’m buying fruit, I look for the seedless version; you know, like watermelon and “seedless grapes,” because seeds can just be an annoyance! When you’re cutting up a watermelon it just takes too much time to “seed” the watermelon. And grapes? Where do you put the tiny little seeds from each and EVERY grape? Not to mention how strategically you need to eat them! You get my point.

But what’s also true, is that seedless watermelon, at least, just doesn’t have that sweet sugary taste quite like that of watermelons with seeds. (do your own experiment the next time you’re at the market! It’s true!)

So not only will fruit without seed not produce more fruit, but it also isn’t as flavorful!

Indeed God desires that we be fruit with the seed in it. So just as the seeds of a watermelon produce a more flavorful sugary, watery watermelon, so we are called to bear juicy fruit…WITH THE SEED, exploding flavor in the world – seeds of God’s love planted in our communities, neighborhoods, families, workplaces – where ever God has planted us.